A Virtual Reconstruction of the Abbey of Cluny

Here’s another big win for the YouTube suggestion algorithm, a new documentary about the building of the third church of the abbey of Cluny, which for over 500 years was the longest church in the world, until it was replaced by the new St Peter’s basilica. Very little of the building remains today, but this documentary gives a very nice virtual reconstruction of it, with a lot of historical details about how it was built, and information which modern archeological research has uncovered about the building the process.

There are two errors that I (and others, in the YouTube comments) have spotted. One is a just slip of the tongue - the abbey was founded in 910, not 1910. The other (41:50) is that the Pope who consecrated the church in 1095 was Bl. Urban II, not Innocent II, whose reign began 35 years later. It has to be said that a lot of the music is too dramatic, and, as has become a general problem with documentaries, some things are said at greater length than is really necessary, but on the whole, I think you will find it well worth your time.